Saturday Story from Siva (38): The Story of Budha and His Way of Handling Turbulence

Hi,
Good morning! Hope you had a great week. For me too, it was a fabulous one with a new client who seemed satisfied with my services, and a couple of new prospects in the process of placing their orders. Having now entered the last week of March and thus the final week of the financial year, it is time for everyone to take a look at the growth and success achieved during the year and plan for the New Year ahead. Have you experienced some turbulences during the year gone by? Please read the story of this week...
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Saturday Story from Siva (38): The Story of Budha and His Way of Handling Turbulence
Author: Unknown (Contribution by VRK Murthy)
One day, Buddha asked one of his disciples to get some water for him to drink from a pool nearby. When the disciple reached the pool, he found that the water had been made dirty by an elephant that had just waded through it. So, the disciple was going to another source of water when Buddha called him back. The disciple explained that the water in the pool was muddy and that he was going to a steam further up.
“No need,” Buddha in his polite soberness told. He also informed him that “The water from the same pool will do.” So the disciple went back to the pool and found that the mud had settled down by then and the water was clear and sparkling. When he returned with the water, Budha told him, “See, never do anything in haste.”
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Each one of us experiences ups and downs in life. There are times of Highs as well as Lows, be it in professional or personal life. It all happens to almost everyone as if it is a nature’s dictum, which one has to abide by. Still, the times of Lows are quite disturbing and distressing leading to sharp reactions rather than sublime understanding. It is again perhaps a nature’s law that anything that is agitated has to get precipitated sooner or later. Bad times don’t exist for ever, and good times will come soon... or sooner if we could only view the failures as the nature’s way of helping us enjoy the sweetness of success greater.
The Best for you always!
With love and regards,
Siva

Saturday Story from Siva (37): The Story of an Indian Farmer and His Way of Moving Forward

Hi,
Good evening! Had a great day today with a team of seed production officers working with them on the issues they confront in their workplace and how to resolve them. As we began the discussion, some of the participants started stating the problems/complaints they receive from the seed growers and suggesting that they were too difficult to resolve. Broke them into smaller groups, allotted an issue to each group, asked them to work out a strategy by which the issue be resolved and present it to the whole group. They came up with superb solutions, the very availability of which was only questioned by them a few minutes before. What has made the difference? The outlook?
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The Story of an Indian Farmer and His Way of Moving Forward
On one of my visits to my native place, I was interacting with an uncle of mine who is a farmer by profession. Just to start the conversation, I asked him, “How are the crops, this season?” He replied “It was a terrible season. We were hit by a severe cyclonic storm and floods at crop maturity that damaged the paddy fields badly.” He continued, “While I could save about 20% of the crop, my cousin lost his crop completely. And, this is not the first time. It has almost become a routine for us.”
I tried empathising with him, “I know what a challenge it is to do farming. But tell me, how do you manage to survive when everything goes so bad, and that too repeatedly?” He said, “Look, we depend on agriculture. We have lost this time. There is no point in worrying about it. The NEXT SEASON could be better. “I could then make out that he doesn’t have the ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ in his dictionary. He only has a positive hope...The NEXT TIME...
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We too go through the bad times. But, have we then asked ourselves questions like, “If only I had bought that piece of land, if only I had taken up that job? If only I had been given that opportunity, if only I had not been treated that way?” Would it be better to look forward with a positive hope for the NEXT TIME? Yes, the better days are ahead!
The best for you always!
With love and regards,
Siva

Saturday Story from Siva (36): The Story of the Japanese and Their Power of RESILIENCE

Hi,
Good morning! Earth revolves around the sun at an amazing speed of about 66,600 miles/hour, and rotates on its own axis at a speed of more than 1000 miles/hour like a spinning top. Moon, the Earth's only natural satellite, orbits around it at a distance of 384000 KM. Minute changes in these numbers could mean big changes for us the humans on the planet earth. Nature is all powerful. Thank God that they are in order most of the times. But, caused by consistent undesired human interventions or some unknown and uncontrollable forces, when they deviate, the disaster strikes..
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The Story of the Japanese and Their Power of RESILIENCE
Natural disasters, fires, and earthquakes destroyed Japan's cities in whole or in part on numerous occasions over the last several centuries. The resilience of the Japanese is such that they did not let themselves down, but bounced back every time and rebuilt their cities transforming them into some of the world’s best.
Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were hit by atomic bombs in Aug 1945. But the Japanese showed tremendous resilience to rebuild them as well as the Japan over the years into world’s 2^nd or 3^rd largest economy. It has been reported that Japan was hit by more than 195 tsunamis so far, but they have withstood all of them. This one, which hit them yesterday, is perhaps the worst. But with the kind of resilience and enormous bouncing-back attitude they had always shown, they should weather the storm, return to the normal life soon, and rebuild the lost cities that would become symbols of power of man’s RESILIENCE,
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There are ups and downs in the lives of people as well as those of nations. It is said, “A Champion is not someone who never falls, but is the one who gets up, every time he falls, and runs forward.”
“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” –Confucius.
The Best for you always!
With love and regards,
Siva

Saturday Story from Siva (35): Story of a King and His Approach to Leading His People

Hi,
Good morning! Leadership is something which we get to experience at various levels. At school or a college, at home as well as at work, at a village or a community level or at a national or global level.. No one is all by himself any more. Everyone is a part of one team or the other; as a member in one team while being the leader of the other. How do we approach the team, especially when we are the leader of the team?
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Story of a King and His Approach to Leading His People
Source: Internet info
One day a sage came to a King for an interview. The sage had to wait for a long time because the King was very busy. Finally, the King said he could come in.
When the sage entered the hall, the first thing he did was to take off his hat and bow to the King. Immediately the King took his crown off and bowed to the sage. The ministers and others who were around the King asked, "What are you doing? He took off his hat because he is an ordinary man. But you are the King. Why should you have to take your crown off?"
The King said to his ministers, "You fools, do you think I wish to remain inferior to an ordinary man? He is humble and modest. His humility is a great virtue. He showed his respect to me. If I did not take off my crown, then I would be showing less humility than an ordinary man. If I am the King, I should be better than everybody in everything. That is why I took off my crown and bowed to him!”
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Being humble when the position is low is good. But it is great if a person who acquires power shows humility and remains humble. We all appreciate when someone occupying a high office comes down to reach out and empathise with the people who are in need. How nice it would be if everyone relinquishes the desire to “control” and develops the attitude to “collaborate”? ‘Humility unto others’ is a great virtue. Let it be expressed at home and work. The world deserves to be a more joyful place.
The Best for you always!
With love and regards,
Siva